Brown spots on grass from 6 month old puppy

[Carolyn Northover]

Apollo is six months old and is a male. When he pees he is leaving brown spots on the grass. The food he is eating is Iams for large puppies and he is not neutered yet. I am wondering what can be done to avoid getting the brown spots in the grass. Is it related to the type of food or because he's not neutered yet? Our previous dog was a female (spayed) cocker spaniel and we never had this issue.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Dog urine burns the grass, because of the high nitrogen content. It's surprising that your female's urine didn't, typically, female dogs are more likely to cause lawn burn than males because females void their entire bladder in one location instead of lifting their leg and marking, like males. Once your pup starts lifting his leg, it will probably improve. It has nothing at all to do with his being intact and will not improve after he's neutered.

Foods with a very high protein content raise the nitrogen content of the urine, which can make matters worse, but Iams is not a high protein food.

There are all kinds of thing you can buy that are supposed to help with this by altering the chemical make-up of the dog's urine, but I think that's a really bad idea. Most dog owners just accept the fact that they are not going to have beautiful lawns, lol. 

If it really bothers you, you can try hosing down the spots immediately after he urinates, that does help. Or you can install some river rock or pea gravel in a portion of the yard, like a dog run, and train him to do his business there.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh, and if you are already using chemical fertilizers on your lawn, that's going to make the problem worse, because you've already raised the nitrogen content. Here's some info & tips:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=2+2085&aid=1493

 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Go to the food group and check out recommended food brands.  There are some better choices to keep your pup healthier for life.  Many foods seem okay but contain ingredients from places - like China - who exercise NO quality controls in their products.  Here is a link to make it easier.   http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/thefoodgroup/forum/topics/recomme...

[DonMarie and Picco]

That is strange that the female didn't.  Another option is to dump a bucket of water or hose down the spot right away. Not very practical!  I just look at the spots and think Perfect lawn = no dog, I'd rather have the dead grass!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Amen! 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

If you have the dog on a leash you can carry a bottle of water and just pour it over the pee right after they go.  It works well for us, but we always have them on leash so it's no big deal.